Salvaging the Pieces
by sakuraichigo
Summary: Shiba Kaien and Kuchiki Rukia's ordeal began the moment her Zanpaktou saved him from irreversible assimilation with the Hollow. As evil rears its ugly head in Soul Society, Kaien and Rukia must fight in order to save all they hold dear.
1. A Drop In The Ocean

**Chapter One / A Drop In The Ocean**

Pelting raindrops tilled the earth, resulting in a fresh grassy scent that permeated the cool night air. It was a refreshing scent for most, but for Kuchiki Rukia, it never failed to evoke memories of a grotesque Hollow and a battle of wills.

Tonight was a night like any other in the rainy season – damp, musky and muddy. It was a season that she had grown to abhor. Yet, she sat beneath the awning just shy of the pattering droplets, hugging her knees and gazing out into the darkness, lost in her own thoughts. 'How long has it been?' she wondered aloud, sighing deeply, attempting to purge the oppression within her chest.

In truth it had been a scant month since the incident that left her squad captain, Ukitake Juushirou, without his vice-captain. She shuddered at the memory of the thirteenth squad's third seat going on a Hollow-induced killing rampage, the blood and the gore and most of all, her furious husband, Vice-Captain Shiba Kaien's attempt and failure at vanquishing the Hollow that had possessed his wife and subsequently ate her. Rukia's ritual every night since then had remained constant. She would sit alone outside until the thoughts that consumed her rendered her sufficiently exhausted so that she could fall into a dreamless sleep the moment her head touched her pillow. Her dreams had been nightmares since the incident.

'Kuchiki, still out here?'

Rukia grunted at the sound of her captain's voice. 'Yes, Captain Ukitake. Still here.'

Ukitake smiled wryly. Stubborn Kuchiki, perpetually alone, always refusing his invitation to a cup of hot tea by a warm fire, even on nights like this. He had admired her resolve and steadfastness from the moment she became part of his squad, even her devotion to habits such as this gave him a sense of pride. Kaien had many good things to say about her, he recalled, even after their first encounter despite her initial faux pas. A nice girl, he had said with a huge grin, obedient though stubborn. His lieutenant was such a terrible tease when it came to the new Shinigamis. In fact, he had heard about the 'Captain Kaien' drivel he subjected the thirteenth squad to on a regular basis.

The captain sat gracefully, arranged the folds of his robe and dangled his feet off the patio. They enjoyed the silence for a few minutes. 'Hey, Kuchiki, I received a report about Kaien from Captain Unohana today. I thought you might want to know the details.'

Kaien had suffered terrible life-threatening wounds from the Hollow while battling it. It had assimilated into his body and had almost fused irrevocably with his organs when Rukia's Zanpaktou had stabbed a vital spot below Kaien's lung. He had lunged at her, fully intent on having her as his meal, but Kaien's will had prevailed. Rukia's memory of impaling Kaien with her Zanpaktou had never faded, the dead weight of his heavy body as he rasped out his thanks and the touch of his hand on her back in the rain were as clear as if it had happened just the day before.

They had rushed Kaien to the fourth division, with Ukitake barely making it in time using Flash Steps, Rukia trailing behind the best way she knew how, shivering in the rain. Any later and he would have been lost, Captain Unohana had said after attending to him for five hours in Emergency. She had managed to remove the remnants of the Hollow and stabilised his condition, but the rest was up to him. He had remained unconscious for two weeks after his return, then had awakened, frail and weak, without much motor control. His spinal cord had been severely injured and it would take him months to recover.

'She said he's made some progress in physiotherapy today,' Ukitake continued, smiling. 'He managed to grip a stress ball for more than thirty seconds. What a guy.'

'That's good to hear.'

'When will you see him, Kuchiki? He's been asking for you.'

She sighed. She had remained as far from the infirmary as possible both to avoid prying questions about that night and to prevent herself from walking unbidden to Kaien's bedside. What would she say to him if she saw him? Mutter platitudes about how it was good to see him alive when his wife, Miyako, had suffered a tragic death? 'I know,' she murmured simply. 'But what do I say, Captain Ukitake? That I'm glad he's alive when Miyako-dono is…'

A solitary tear slid down her cheek.

A warm arm circled her shoulders. 'There, there. C'mon now, Kuchiki, you're going to sob like a baby on me?' Ukitake squeezed the slight girl against his sturdy frame. Poor girl, always torturing herself, bearing her burdens alone. 'I don't think you have to say a thing even. He just wants to see you. Go first thing tomorrow morning. It's an order.'

Rukia whipped her head round and glared at her captain. 'Captain Ukitake! That's… that's…'

'An abuse of authority, I know. Pity I have to resort to this.' He smiled warmly and rose, placing a hand on her head. 'Alright, I'm going to retire for the night. You rest early too. Long day ahead of you tomorrow. Remember, we have a reconnaissance mission tomorrow.'

Rukia watched his figure disappear round the corner. Long day tomorrow indeed, she thought, once again returning her gaze to the darkness beyond.

-------

'Ku… Kuchiki…'

Rukia blinked back the tears that threatened to spill over as she sat on the plain wooden chair by his bedside, peeling an apple. It was difficult to see someone who had been so full of vitality reduced to a shadow of his former self. Curse Captain Ukitake and his orders. Orders she was not bound by, she admitted silently.

She glanced at him. 'Kaien… dono…' She paused, unable to continue. Perhaps it was easier to wait for him to say something, because she was completely at a loss in his presence.

He tugged weakly at her sleeve, his spinal injuries apparent in the movements from his neck down. 'Hey, Kuchiki… I'm finally glad you've come to see me after all this time. Where the _hell_ have you been you little shit?'

'Uh?'

'You heard me. I've been so bloody bored doing physio all day, staring at the ceiling because my motor neurons won't function. No sake, no crustaceans, said Captain Unohana. Even Captain Kyouraku refused to sneak in a damn jug. The least you could do, Arrogant Miss, is come visit! If only to entertain me!' He paused for breath and glowered at Rukia. 'Close your trap, woman. It's totally unbecoming for a noble lady.'

Clearly, the nerve damage he had suffered had no effect whatsoever on his mouth. He ranted on about this and that, the treatment he was subjected to and the lack of amusement while he continued on his arduous journey of recovery. Rukia simply stared, her eyes wide and unblinking at her vice-captain. She had expected a feeble, downtrodden shinigami and not… _that_. But it was Shiba Kaien after all and he was not exactly known for gentility or decorum.

'Eh, Kuchiki,' he paused in the midst of his tirade, turning his head on the pillow to look at her, then sighed. 'Are you even listening to me?'

'Why? Why… are you still so… how can you still be the same?' Her tears threatened to overflow. She could barely hold them back and blinked as furiously as she could.

Kaien fixed his piercing gaze on her, his features hardening visibly. 'What good would it do if I wallowed in my current plight? Would it bring Miyako back? Would my health improve if my spirits remained low? You know far better than I the strength it takes to survive in Soul Society. For now, this is my way of picking up the pieces.'

His eyes strayed beyond the window. 'Life goes on, Kuchiki. Whether we want it to or not.'

'Yes, Kaien-dono.'

It had started to drizzle.


	2. Lurking Shadows

**Chapter 2 / Lurking Shadows**

Beads of perspiration were accumulating on Rukia's head and neck, causing her robes to cling onto her skin uncomfortably at the neckline. The weather had taken a drastic turn in comparison to the downpour that had occurred shortly after she left Kaien to his own devices. It was unbelievably sunny. Scorching, even. Rukia enjoyed the heat of the sun on most days, but moving swiftly in the oppressive heat while on a dangerous mission was another kettle of fish altogether.

Her team, led by Ukitake, had set off in the late morning to further investigate the puzzle of Kaien's incident. The previous investigations a few days after the event had revealed more questions than it had answered. The captains had met and discussed the findings of Captain Soi Fong and the Secret Mobile Corps and it was during this meeting that Captain Kurotsuchi had pointed out the incongruity of the Hollow Kaien had encountered with the other Hollows, based on his studies of the tissue that had been excised by Unohana during her intense operation on Kaien.

Firstly, he did not know of any Hollows that were able to enter, assimilate with and control Shinigami. Secondly, other Hollows, he maintained, dissipate immediately after their Hollow masks were cleaved, while this one had expired very much like a human or animal would have if fatally wounded. Thirdly, he had never heard of Hollows who had the ability to make Zanpaktous vanish the moment a Shinigami touched its feelers. Kurotsuchi, who dealt frequently with the macabre and the gore of experimentation with glee, had been extremely pleased with the tissue sample Unohana had provided. Even so, he had been more than disturbed at the developments his analyses had shown.

Soi Fong's report had been even more disconcerting. The members of the SMC had discovered that the Hollow's appearance was not a coincidence. It appeared that it had been deliberately released into Soul Society. The purpose, however, was unknown. The identity of the individual who had done it had yet to be discovered.

And that was their mission – to assist the former twelfth captain and head of the Technological Development Bureau, Urahara Kisuke, in his analysis of the environment close to the site of entry. The SMC had gone ahead with Vice-Captain Kurotsuchi Nemu to gather samples for analysis at the site of the Hollow's entrance, which they had managed to track previously.

'Yo! Ukitake!'

Ukitake halted his team and strode forward to meet the man in green who had called him. Beside him was a woman in orange. 'Oh, Urahara! Ah, it's been a long time, hasn't it?' He turned to the slender lady beside him. 'And Yoruichi! You're here too. Isn't this just like old times?'

'Hah! Ukitake, you exaggerate as usual,' the woman snorted, folding her arms across her chest and grinning widely. 'This is nothing like old times. Although, wherever Urahara goes, I generally do too. _That_ hasn't changed.'

'Ah, so it hasn't.' Ukitake turned to Rukia. 'Well, we've finally met up with our contacts. Urahara, Yoruichi… this is Kuchiki Rukia. Rukia, these are Urahara Kisuke and Shihouin Yoruichi.'

Rukia had stood politely by the side choosing to watch her captain instead of approaching the two strangers. Urahara Kisuke. Former twelfth division captain and research fiend, exiled for the creation of an undetectable faux body. Shihouin Yoruichi, former commander of the SMC and second division captain who had followed him. These were two individuals who were known throughout all of Soul Society for being unbelievably strong. She bowed deeply. 'Urahara-sama, Shihouin-sama. Pleased to meet you.' The greeting was one of the things that Kaien had taught her.

'Ho, no no! _Yoruichi-san_ will do just fine,' Yoruichi flipped her hand dismissively and smiled warmly. 'Kuchiki Rukia. Would you happen to be from that noble clan?'

'Yes. I was adopted by Captain Kuchiki Byakuya of the sixth division.'

'Oh, Byakuya-boy. Now I haven't seen _him_ in a while. How is he?'

'Byakuya nii-sama is doing well…' Rukia began, amused by Yoruichi's informal nickname for her brother. Ukitake snorted. 'Oh he's as spoilt as ever. But we don't have time to reminisce about old times, I'm afraid. We should get to work.'

'Ah, yes,' Urahara folded his arms beneath the voluminous sleeves of his robe. 'Old Man Yamamoto himself has mentioned the circumstances behind this investigation. It is indeed peculiar.' He frowned. 'It was generous of him to lift my ban from Soul Society the moment he has some use for me though.' Urahara grasped his hat. 'Let's get going. If there really is someone behind all this, we have no time to waste. Lead us to the site, Ukitake.'

-------

'Im… impossible! Yoruichi! YORUICHI!'

The purple haired woman sprinted in the direction of Urahara's voice, a worried frown creasing her forehead. She stopped short when she beheld a swathe of dark olive green cloth with its trademark white diamond-shaped motif moving beneath a bush. An arm stretched out in the midst of the thick foliage with a forefinger stabbing blindly in a myriad of directions. Urahara must be too preoccupied with his coup if he was this flustered.

'Hand me that swab. Quickly!' Stifling her amusement, she grabbed the swab out of the open kit on the ground nearby and slapped it onto his open palm. She heard a series of mutters and a distinct curse before Urahara began extricating himself from the shrubbery. 'Blasted thorns. Now I've got holes in my robe… the _hell_.'

'Well, what did you find?' Yoruichi peered into the sealed tube that he held aloft. The clear pink preservation liquid sloshed within it. Despite the size of the sampling tube, she could make out a light blue substance, partially rendered a fetching shade of lilac where it was immersed in the fluid. 'Isn't that pretty,' she smirked. 'Surely you didn't decide to bring this back to the lab based on its aesthetic merits, Kisuke.'

'Oh no, certainly not! This swab might very well contain our strongest lead!' He whipped out his fan and waved it back and forth in front of his face, which had begun to accumulate droplets of perspiration. 'UKITAKE! RUKIA-SAN!' he yelled, then knelt to rummage in his kit for the other samples he had collected. There were a total of eight tubes.

Ukitake and Rukia came running. 'What is it, Urahara?'

'You can call your team off the hunt. If they haven't found anything significant by now, it's highly doubtful that they will. The SMC appear to have retrieved most of the other samples for Kurotsuchi. I'm surprised I managed to find these though,' he brandished the eight tubes nestled safely in rows within his investigation kit. 'Each contains a different sample, eight tubes from eight unique locations. Some of the samples appear to be similar at first glance, but I can't confirm this until I return to my own lab to perform some analyses. I've also mapped out the locations of the samples on a map.'

'Any guesses as to what they could possibly be?' Ukitake furrowed his brows as he scrutinised the samples.

'Like I said, I can't say for sure. Probably some artefacts that help open a portal to Hueco Mundo. It's not like anything I've ever seen. The Hollow baits that the Quincy used to use were nothing like this.'

Rukia blinked. 'But Urahara-san… a portal? How?'

Urahara fished out a map from the pocket of his coat. 'Observe the locations of the samples. If you join the crosses together with straight lines, they form an octagon. Not as sophisticated as bait in terms of subtlety, but it appears far more dangerous than it seems.'

Yoruichi gasped. 'You mean… it's likely this creates a large open portal to Hueco Mundo?'

'Exactly.'


	3. Troubling Impediments

Thanks for all who've left their comments on previous chapters. My ridiculous schedule before has relegated this fanfic to temporary hiatus. I'm back in the mode however, thanks to my Bleach playlist and more free time, so here is the latest installment.

There are more scenes in this one than in the previous chapters, which had two scenes each. It's getting more complicated and (hopefully) more exciting.

* * *

**Chapter 3 **//** Troubling Impediments**

Since the discovery of the possibility of a constructed portal to Hueco Mundo two days ago, the Seireitei had been in a constant uproar. Captain Kurotsuchi and his team had been confined to the laboratories of the twelfth division performing an endless myriad of analyses on the samples procured. Urahara himself had settled in the large underground laboratory, deep in the bowels of the division's main building, intent on making a breakthrough discovery about the technology behind what had now been unofficially dubbed The Devil's Portal. He was secretly grateful for the dangerous turn of events that had resulted in the lifting of his ban by Commander General Yamamoto. Researching something on such a large scale as this was a great avenue of release for his technological bloodlust.

'Any luck?'

Urahara paused in the midst of preparing a micro litre of sample for yet another tedious analysis and looked up to find Yoruichi perched on the at the top of the stairs. 'Sadly, no. This is far more involved than I'd originally thought. There must be a greater purpose to releasing Hollows through the portal than for mere entertainment,' he grumbled.

'Ah, you're sure you aren't saying that because it's more annoying than usual, Kisuke?' Yoruichi purred, smirking. 'All those years you've spent on earth seem to have dulled your senses somewhat.'

Urahara rolled his eyes heavenward. 'Goodness knows why I spend so much time with you. You're always _so_ encouraging.'

His partner released a short burst of laughter. 'You need a break. You're getting crankier than usual.' She beckoned with an elegant finger. 'It's past noon. Ukitake offered to buy us lunch.'

'I'll have to seal these away,' he muttered beneath his breath, ego a little worse for wear. At least he was getting a free meal in the bargain. If he had to endure such slights from Yoruichi, he could do it with a full stomach.

-----

'Nemu! _Nemu_! Where _is_ that imbecile?'

'I am here, Mayuri-sama. What is it you wish of me?'

Kurotsuchi turned swiftly, his robes flapping in the furious gust of wind he created with the rapid movement. 'What I wish, _Nemu_, is that you would pay greater attention to your environment!'

Twelfth Division Lieutenant Kurotsuchi Nemu winced inwardly. Regardless of the length of time she had served with her creator and father, she could never get used to the way he belittled her. The continuous experiments and frequent dismemberments were less excruciating compared to having her spirit flogged on a daily basis. She was, unfortunately, unable to reveal her sentiments, not because she was an obedient servant like most thought she was. In actual fact, Nemu respected her father deeply.

'Yes, Mayuri-sama.'

'Now, stupid girl, hand me the key to the database computer!'

Nemu slipped a hand into the hidden pocket within her robes and withdrew the wooden key. It was snatched out of her grasp within seconds, Kurotsuchi disappearing swiftly in the direction of the database room. 'I trust I need not tell you what to do, girl! Do not dawdle, time is wasting! Do I need to remind you once more that I can take you apart as I wish? We both know how agonizing the process is.'

'Yes.' She bowed in deference and resumed her journey across the division's quarters to the central control room of the Technological Development Bureau.

-----

There was too much food in her bowl, Rukia decided, frowning at her captain. He was a generous man, but such a large helping of rice was surely excessive even if he did think she needed some 'beefing up'. That was undoubtedly the suggestion of good ol' Kaien-dono who had complained about her lithe frame during one of their training sessions with Ukitake present. There was no power in her attacks, he had said, sneering in that usual way of his as he blocked the strikes of her Zanpaktou. That _idiot_.

So why was she smiling?

'Rukia, what do you think?'

'Uh?' She blinked at Ukitake, a little embarrassed to be caught daydreaming. It might have been lunchtime, but it was after all a working lunch of sorts. 'Sorry, I was preoccupied with something else.'

Ukitake clucked in mock horror. 'Kuchiki, we try not to daydream these days when things are so dire.'

'I was _not_ daydreaming.'

Yoruichi slid forward across a good portion of the table, chin resting on the back of her entwined fingers. She grinned knowingly. 'Is that so, Rukia?'

This was getting a little too ridiculous for her tastes. Rukia straightened up in her seat. 'You were saying, Captain?'

'There have been no definitive leads so far,' interjected Urahara. 'We have the clues, but it appears that we might not have the technological know-how in order to decipher them. It's taking longer than usual. Ordinarily, the turnover time for the Bureau would be within a day or two…'

'… and it has been two days.' Ukitake sighed. 'Indeed, there does not seem to be much progress. Are we in over our heads?'

Rukia tapped her chopsticks gently on the edge of her bowl, deep in thought. Did that mean to say that even the top scientists of Soul Society did not have the means to figure out what exactly was going on? It hardly seemed possible. 'Perhaps,' she ventured, 'it is not that we do not have the technological know-how, we are merely applying them in the wrong way.'

'Oh? How so?' Yoruichi, along with the other two raised their eyebrows in unison.

_They're so in sync_, Rukia thought, astounded. _No doubt a by-product of close friendship across worlds and one that has lasted for eons._ She cleared her throat. 'I do not claim to know much about technology, Urahara-san. However, since we have almost exhausted conventional methods for analysis, it might be useful to try avenues that we usually would not.'

'Hmm. That certainly might prove to be advantageous. I will run the idea by Kurotsuchi right after lunch, although trying to convince him of this might be an issue. Thank you, Rukia-san. I've been so used to conventional methods that it is difficult to think beyond the old boundaries.'

Yoruichi smirked for the umpteenth time that day. 'Or perhaps, Kisuke, you're just rusty.'

-----

Seireitei was unusually quiet, though far from tranquil. The atmosphere, on the contrary, was stifling. _Like the calm before the storm_, Rukia mused, shuddering. The shinigami were kept on their toes and the captains met at least once a day with Yamamoto in order to keep all abreast of the situation.

She had been visiting Kaien after lunch for the last two days. He had claimed extreme boredom during her first visit and had made such a ruckus with his demands for some _decent companionship_, purely with that large yapping mouth of his, until fourth division captain, Unohana Retsu, pleaded her consent. The entire division's premises had been in an uproar, with patients claiming of more ailments than usual. Kaien-dono clearly had an issue with undertaking tasks quietly, even recuperation. It was a wonder he could manage his lieutenant duties.

The moment she entered the fourth division, however, it was clearly a hive of activity. Healers and attendants were about their usual work, tending to the sick. Some who recognised her turned and smiled. Some grinned mischievously. Now that was strange.

'Kuchiki! It's been a while! Where the _hell_ have you been?' Trust him to holler at the top of his lungs out the window. He had sensed her reiatsu.

She pressed her fingers to her temple and hurried to the second floor of the building.

'Check this out!'

'Kaien… dono…' Rukia halted abruptly by the door, eyes wide in shock.

He was sitting upright, legs dangling off the edge of the bunk, crutches in hand.

* * *

Cliffhanger! I'm really not certain how many chapters this piece will end up being, but for the life of me, I hope I don't write beyond its plot life. Urg. 

Thanks for reading, hope you enjoyed it! XD (Is it just me or can't I use the usual emotes) -- Janet (sakuraichigo)


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